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Friday, December 31, 2010

It has been another great month of training. I've lost a little mojo, but I've stayed mostly on target and have done the workouts to the best of my abilities. I missed all of three workouts. Two of them being in the same week when I just lost focus. And the other one I missed for a funeral. Other than that, I'm still on. Monthly totals:

Swim = 20,500 meters (~12.8 miles)

Bike = 117.75 miles (I missed two bike workouts)

Run = 97.62 miles (that's nearly as many miles run this month as biked, and until last week, that was on only 3 days a week of running)

Strength = 4.75 hours (I missed one strength workout)

Now on to the grand totals for 2010. Overall, I think it was a great year in terms of numbers. I put more miles on my bike this year than I have in the last three years combined of owning my bike. Hopefully next year, these numbers will be even better as I'm more motivated to stay on task with my workouts.

Total Swimming = 228,185 meters (nearly 143 miles of swimming!!!)

Total Biking = 2,446.63 miles

Total Running = 756.05 miles

Total Strength = 20.25 hours (and most of that was in the last two months)

Thursday, December 30, 2010

I think a lot about whether I'm tough enough for the goals and races I want to achieve.

Last week I had a run test on the schedule. I had already rocked my swim test and done well on my bike test back in November. To me, though, the run test is the most important. I've seen a lot of improvement on my run in the last month and I wanted it to shine through during my test. However, it's been a long time since I've done a run test and I've not done one without a race or not in warm weather. Thusfar, this has not been a kind winter so I decided to move my test to the treadmill. My goal for some time has to be able to run a race of any kind (except a one mile race) at a sub-7:00 pace. I thought the run test would be a perfect opportunity to give it a try. When I started the test, however, the treadmill seemed to be flying at a 7:30 pace and just six minutes into the test, I began to panic. How in the world was I going to be able to hold this pace or faster for 20 minutes? And just like that, I hit the stop button and data was lost. Crap! I restarted my watch and tried again. This time I made it a whopping two minutes. At this point there were tears and the day was done.

Two days later, the weather was still not kind, but I decided to give the run test a-go outside. It was bitterly cold with a wind chill around 11 degrees and wind at 15-20 mph. I started my warm up and I immediately knew it was going to be a challenging day. I don't know if it was the days of travel for Christmas, or sitting around a lot during the holiday, or just all the extra clothes, but I just felt like my legs wouldn't "fire". Every step seemed to be work. I chose the flattest part of the neighborhood to do the test, but in all honesty, it wasn't that flat and the wind made it seem like I was constantly running uphill. The first 5+ minutes of the test went okay and my pace was hovering around 7:05 and my heart rate was high. But soon I started to panic again. The pace was dropping, my legs weren't cooperating, and I just didn't feel good. As I came by the house I actually thought about stopping. I finished the test, but I didn't find it successful. The results, to me, were disgusting.

Coach agreed that this wasn't a good test and now I've got to try again. And this time she mandated it be on a treadmill. Although I know this is a heart rate test and pace isn't that important, I still feel I should be doing better than the last two attempts have been. All of this lead to a discussion with Dave. Am I tough enough?

Since August 29th, when my attempt at Ironman ended with a trip to the medical center, all I have thought about is "did I sabotage my Ironman?" Did I give up? Did I really work as hard as I could have to finish the race? My parents, my friends, my teammates, Dave, and Coach have all stated it was the circumstances of the day and the weather, but I trained all summer in that heat, and I honestly believe I was well hydrated coming off that bike--7 bottles of sports drink and 5 bottles of water.

Dave asked me when I was struggling on the treadmill last week, when was the last time I had to work for a race? I really had to think about that. The last time I remember really working for a race? Probably the Columbus Marathon 2003 when I was trying to qualify for Boston for the first time, I fell behind the pace leaders, threw myself a pity party, and then finally pulled my shit together and caught back up with that pace team to qualify. It's been a long time since I've had to be in that position. Don't get me wrong. I work really hard in practice. But my races have been easy. Boston 2009 when I ran a 3:29 might have been the easiest marathon I've ever run. But when things haven't been easy, I've given up. The Nike Women's Marathon in 2009 is a prime example. I'm just not sure I know how to be tough anymore.

I've set my sights very high in 2011. It's an important year for me. I've got big goals and big dreams and I have to achieve them. Physically I know it's possible. Mentally, I might need a little work....

Wednesday, December 29, 2010

Every year I set a goal for myself to read 12 books. This year I failed big time. I would blame it on Ironman training, but the honest truth is it's the daggone handheld solitaire game my mom bought me. That thing is ruining my life!

Here are the books I read in 2010:

Born to Run by: Christopher McDougall. I loved this book, but I think I am the only person who read this book who did not think it was about barefoot running or even advocate it. I thought it was about our physiological natural abilities for running. I found the book to be motivating and dreaming of venturing into ultras.

My Horizontal Life by: Chelsea Handler. Funny. Lighthearted. Cute.

Angles and Demons by: Dan Browne. Love, love, love. I can't wait to read the next adventures of Robert Langdon. Of course, I spread out the books so I have something to look forward to if Dan Browne continues the stories.

Eat, Pray, Love by: Elizabeth Gilbert. That damn Oprah! She sucks me into her book selections and then leaves me with crap! This book started out so promising. I loved the parts on Italy. But then I got to the second section on India and it dragged on FOREVER! Finally I gave up once I reached Indonesia. Yep, I didn't finish this book. Nor have I seen the movie.

Running Dark by: Jamie Fravelleti. Somehow I got on the publishers' list and they have been sending me Jamie Fravelleti's books to read and review. This one continued the adventures of Emma Caldridge but moved the story to Africa and a cruise ship. Her stories read really well, almost like you're watching them on a movie screen. This was a great read, but I liked the first one better.

90 Minutes in Heaven by: Dan Piper and Cecil Murphey. This book was given to my grandma from a friend who was dealing with grief and found this book reassuring. I found this book boring, monotonous, and poorly written. This book is less than 200 pages and, I kid you not, it took me nearly four months to read.

I'm Proud of You by: Tim Madigan. This is a true story about the author's personal relationship with Mr. Rogers. It's a beautiful story and I might have shed a tear or two.

Devoted: The Story of a Father's Love for his Son by: Dick Hoyt. My brother-in-law got me this book for Christmas. I'm half way through it already. I was very fortune to have an up-close-and-personal moment with Dick and Rick Hoyt when I passed them in Boston 2009. It was magical, as is this book thusfar.

My solitaire game is almost out of batteries. I'm going to let them run out and not put new ones in. Hopefully I can do some more reading in 2011. Any book recommendations?

A new Splish swimsuit. It's blue and black and does not have anything written across the butt.

A pink wrist Road ID. I got one for Dave and so did my parents. He's now got one for each wrist and his running shoe.

A pair of Belega running socks.

A rear view mirror for my bicycle helmet.

Cash. I'm paying a race entry fee with it this week.

Clinique Even Better Dark Spot Corrector. I've been using it since Friday and I swear I can already tell a difference.

A Limited gift card.

Surprises:

Dave got me three new bikinis for our trip to Mexico in a few weeks. I haven't gotten a new bikini since our honeymoon 8+ years ago. Surprisingly two of the three actually fit and look nice.

Dave's parents got us both new masks and snorkels for our trip to Mexico. Mine's pink, of course.

My parents got us an electric fence so that Sloopy can now run around in the yard. Of course, I'm still going to be out there watching for her to make sure no hawks, coyotes, or owls come and get here. You'd think we'd live in the wilderness. No we live in the suburbs, but I've seen all three of those in this neighborhood.

I gave Dave a Nook (Barnes and Noble electronic reader). He was REALLY surprised with that one. He hasn't put it down yet.

Things I'm going to buy myself:

I actually got two rear view mirrors for my bike helmet. So I'm going to return one and get some chain lube instead. I had this one on my list, but I don't think I told anyone.

Dave and I have asked for the waterproof case for our camera for a couple of years now. It's really too expensive to put on a list unless you're getting married and your friends can chip in for it. We're just gonna go ahead and buy it ourselves TODAY so we can get it in time for our trip. Plus, we'll totally use that during triathlon training.

Surprisingly I didn't get too much training/racing gear. I'm still debating if I'm going to buy myself some calf sleeves. Everyone I know who has used them has said great things about them. I just don't know....

Wednesday, December 22, 2010

Did you watch the coverage of Ironman Hawaii on NBC this past Saturday? At first I hated the broadcast. If I had to see one more product placement of Ford or Road ID or if I had to watch that A-Hole Macca yammer on about how he's the most awesome athlete ever, I thought I might hit something. But then I watched it again on my DVR and was able to fast forward that stuff and the broadcast was a lot better. Now that I've attempted the distance, I'd like the broadcast to be different. I think it's a little "fluffy." I don't think they really show how difficult and draining the day can be nor do they really articulate what is put into the training to get the result. Someday I'd really like them to cover the "everyday" triathlete and not just the athletes there on a media pass.

I have suddenly started snoring. SNORING!!! On Sunday after spending a day with my sister, her boyfriend, and their gazillion kids, I fell asleep around 9:30pm. Dave was not so tired and played on his phone while I slept. He said I was snoring. Loudly. I totally denied this until Tuesday morning when I woke myself up snoring. Usually people start snoring as they put on the pounds, but I've lost 3 pounds in the last 6 weeks so...what's the deal?

All my Christmas shopping is done and wrapped. Hallelujah!!! And I'm so excited to have others open their gifts. I think I did really well this year.

I haven't been on Facebook or Twitter since Friday morning. I didn't check my email all weekend and have limited myself to checking it only three times a day since Monday. It's liberating.

I cut my bangs again. Did I mention that? I have absolutely no willpower when it comes to growing them out.

Training is continuing to go well. Updates next week and a end-of-year wrap-up.

Tuesday, December 21, 2010

Last week I agreed to meet a friend early on Saturday to begin our run before the rest of the group showed up. This way I could get in a good 5 miles and finish my 12 mile run when everyone else would be finishing too. I knew it would be cold on Saturday, but I had no idea.

The weather read 11 degrees when I woke up Saturday morning with a wind chill of zero. Good grief. Why do I not have anyone's phone numbers?! So, I bundled up and headed out. This is what I was wearing:

Long sleeve base layer

Arm warmers over the base layer

Cotton t-shirt

Jacket

Tiny, tight running shorts

Tights

Leg warmers (cut off tube socks, laugh if you must, but they work)

Socks

Shoes

Yak Traks

Glittens (half gloves, half mittens)

Winter hat

I arrived at Antrim Park around 7:10am and no one was there. I've never seen that before. And my friend showed just a few minutes after me. Game on. My friend is A LOT faster than me, but said he would run with me. After adjusting my Yak Traks, we were off. We chatted the whole time. It seemed to be a little rushed, but I was still talking comfortably so it couldn't have been that bad right? The snow was slowing us down, right?

Nope. That first five miles was in 41 minutes. That's pretty darn fast for all that clothing, the Yak Traks, and the snow on the ground. I still had seven miles to go!

I mentioned it was cold. It was cold!!! As we approached the end of the five miles I pulled out my water bottle from my belt and couldn't open it. It was frozen shut. That has NEVER happened to me before. And the bottle was underneath my coat, next to my warm body. Luckily, the other water bottle was still working.

We met the rest of our group at 8:00am and continued on our way. Now I was running with my "regulars" including my dad. The pace had slowed way down (thank goodness). Another 3 miles into our run I had had enough. I had started my run too quickly and I just didn't want to run anymore. My dad, Mr. Take No Prisoners, of course would not walk with me so neither did I. I kept shuffling along. I reached to get some more water and my other water bottle was frozen. No more water for me. :( That last seven miles took me over 65 minutes. Obviously, considerably slower than the first five miles.

When I finished I had icicles on my eyelashes. Cool! I looked like Lady GaGa. I wish I had brought my camera. My water bottles were still frozen and so was I. My jacket has a velcro pocket where I had stashed my car key. My fingers were so frozen I didn't think I was going to be able to open it. I had to take my glove off, which made things worse. I got my key out but then had to use two hands to put the key in the car. My hands were blocks of ice.

Here's the kicker about how cold it was. I drove from the park to Starbucks, picked up a hot chocolate, and drove home with the heat on high. In total, this was probably a half hour trip. I got home and hopped immediately into the a super long, super hot shower. As we headed to lunch an hour later, I took my water bottles out of my backpack. It had now been an hour and a half since I had left the park. My water bottles still had big ice chunks in them! Daggone it was cold!

Our weather man, with a grin on his face, keeps telling us about the -50 degree weather in Alaska that is coming our way. I chose the wrong winter to train for a marathon.

Monday, December 20, 2010

Each week, I will feature a recipe on Monday that Dave and I cooked the previous week. If you'd like to contribute a recipe, please leave a comment below or send it to me via email: meredith-gordon@insight.rr.com.

Before Ironman Kansas Dave and I visited this kinda yuppy restaurant just off the campus of Kansas. The menu had me a little worried. I'm a carb-loader before a race and I like what I like--spaghetti, lasagna, ravioli, etc. But I picked this off the menu:

It's chicken and linguine with pesto sauce. And it was GOOD!!! Since I raced to a HUGE PR, it's probably lucky too.

Then he fixed the chicken while I worked on the whole grain linguine (did you read that Coach?!?).

And here is the finished product that we served with a salad and a tall glass of water.

It was really yummy. Maybe a little heavy on the bread crumbs and cheese, but otherwise very good. I would have liked the pesto to be a little creamier, but maybe taking out some of the bread crumbs and cheese will help with that. Unfortunately, after looking up the calorie content of this, we're a little more disappointed, but now we're looking for more calorie conscious options for this meal. Bon appetite!

Friday, December 17, 2010

I've decided to get offline for a few days. It's been a pretty weird week. I've said stuff that was inappropriate. I've been hurt by what others have said. And of course it was all done online which means no one has any idea what is REALLY being said.

That being said, I'm unplugging. No email (except work email), no blogs, no Facebook, no Twitter, no websites. I need to get some stuff done. I need to live in the real world.

Thursday, December 16, 2010

I have been running with the same crew for maybe eight years. We're a close-knit, rag tag bunch. The group started as a lunchtime running group of the same employees of a business downtown. But over the years the group has gotten a little bit more "inbred", if you will. We are now a group that has dated, or is married to, or is the son or daughter of someone else in the group. This weekend we lost one of our own. Today is the funeral. It's going to be a rough day.

Wednesday, December 15, 2010

Swimsuits -- Seriously I go through swimsuits like candy. I can never have enough. I am in love with Splish because they're cute and they last a lot longer than any other swimsuits.

Road ID for wrist or ankle -- As a runner I've been wearing a Road ID on my shoes for years, but now that I also bike, it's time to have one on me at all the time.

Running socks -- My favorite socks to run in are Balega. I like the short ones with the cushioning on the achilles. Now I've tried Zulu, which is also by Balega and do not like it as much. I'm kinda picky about my running socks.

Rear view mirror for bike helmet -- Make fun of me if you want, but it's scary out there on the streets. Where I ride my bike involves a lot of BIG farm equipment and I want to see if coming before it scares the crap out of me! I will also be doing most of my bike riding by myself this year and I want to stay safe.

Energy wrist band -- Hey if it's good enough for Kara Goucher, it's good enough for me.

Cash -- Seriously peeps, races are expensive and owning your own business doesn't mean you're rolling in dough. I'm hoping for a little help paying for a few races.

Waterproof case for our camera -- I haven't mentioned this yet, but Dave and I are going on a cruise next month and will be snorkeling. It would be fun to take the camera in the water.

Compression calf sleeves -- I'm totally torn on if I really want these or not. I consider myself an organic runner - shoes on and out the door. But, I do run mostly mid- to forefoot and my calves get tight. If I don't get these, it won't be the end of the world.

Clinique Even Better Dark Spot Corrector -- I have so much sun damage from baking in the sun when I was a kid. I've had many treatments to my skin but I really can't afford those anymore. I might as well try something that's a little more in my price range.

Gift cards -- When I'm not working out, I like to dress nice. I do own a business, after all. My favorite place to shop is The Limited. And you can never do wrong with an iTunes gift card.

Running tights/capris -- I only have two great pairs of winter running tights. Now that I'm training for a late winter/early spring marathon, I think I'd like to have at least one more pair. I've also been debating running capris. To be honest, I make fun of people who wear these. No self-respecting real runner would be caught dead in them. But, it would also be nice to have some for in between weather like 35 degrees. Don't publically disgrace me if you see me in them. :)

I gave this list to my mom and she said, "huh, I had a list for you already and nothing on this list matches my list." So, who knows what will be under the tree next week. Hope Santa brings all my running and triathlon friends awesome stuff next week (or already did for my Jewish friends).

Monday, December 13, 2010

Coach has given me the green light to train for the National Marathon in March and things are going smoothly. Right now I'm running 3 days a week, mostly geared toward the marathon, and the rest of the week involves swimming, biking, and strength all for triathlon and the big iron distance race in 2011. All of my training is going great. I'm feeling focused and strong. So what's the problem? I love to run. I don't think you heard me right. I LOVE TO RUN!!!!!!! Running right now is effortless, almost poetic. The paces are swift but gentle. I'm absolutely loving every minute of it. And it makes me think, what am I doing messing around with triathlon?

For years I've dabbled in triathlon. I would tell people I'm a runner pretending to be a triathlete. But when I started to do better and place in my age group at races and having spent a year training for Ironman, I guess you can't pretend to be a triathlete anymore. I promised my coach that I would not pretend this year. I would stop saying I'm a runner and instead I would tell people and myself I'm a triathlete. But I'm having a hard time identifying.

One of my first times I did Boston I saw a girl I knew from the blogosphere, Elizabeth. At the time, Elizabeth and I were pretty similar runners. Not too slow, not too fast, but good enough. I even think we had similar experiences at Boston. Over the years I kinda lost track of her until this fall when I found out my teammate Janet and my real life friend Mandy were friends with Elizabeth. While reading Janet's race report from the Columbus Half Marathon I saw she had mentioned something about Elizabeth running the full marathon. I clicked on Elizabeth's race report only to be totally floored to see she had finished 2nd at the marathon. SECOND! What the heck happened? As Mandy puts it, she has a goal and will work for it.

So it makes me think, what is my potential at running? Since I started working with a coach I've dropped 6 minutes in the marathon (3:29), 3 minutes in the half (1:38), I've set new PRs, and have even won a race. Again it makes me think, what am I doing messing around with triathlon? If I can do that in just one year of working with a coach, what can I do in two years time? Three years? Four years? Can I qualify for NYC? Can I break my dad's PR (3:21). Can I finally run a race where I average in the 6:00s?

I know I have unfinished business at the iron distance. And don't get me wrong, I plan to get my revenge. But I just wonder if right now is the time? If the goal is just to finish, am I wasting running potential in the years that count? I just don't know.

Sunday, December 12, 2010

My running shoes seemed to be the only thing that went right with my run yesterday.

(Actually, that's not true. My run was FANTASTIC! But my wardrobe was a different story.)

I looked at the temperature when I woke up. Thirty degrees. Crap! What do I do with 30 degrees? Mid thirties, I consider shorts weather. Under thirty I consider tights weather. But I never know what to do with 30. And this was a longer run (10 miles) so I needed to consider the warm-up factor. I put on a pair of ankle socks, tights, a base layer shirt, a light zip-up top, and knit gloves. I had my winter cap in hand, but walked outside and decided on a ballcap instead. That was a good choice. Throughout the run I was warm, but got cold multiple times when the wind would get whippy (yes it's a word). The gloves came off and went back on about four times throughout the run.

Here's the real kicker. I was wearing a water belt. See, I have a rule. Any run one hour or less, I will carry a hand-held water bottle. With a long run, however, I like to wear a water belt to have plenty of water and to be hands free. I have had my water belt for nearly 10 years and it really is starting to show it's age. Two of my four bottles leak. I only wore two bottles yesterday and somehow managed to get one of the leakers. My left side was wet for the entire run. The real problem with my water belt is that the elastic is stretched and the water belt does not stay put anymore. It's even worst when I'm wearing shiny, slippery clothing, which is pretty much all running clothing. So yesterday I fought with my water belt for the entire 10 miles. It was driving me nuts. When I was supposed to be picking up the pace, my water belt was around my ribs. Seriously. I looked and felt like a total tool bag! I met Dave after the run for some hot chocolate and told him if he wasn't finished Christmas shopping for me, I'd LOVE a new water belt.

Here's what I'm thinking. I currently have a Fuel Belt brand and it has served me well. I know they have newer options, especially ones you can adjust so there's no way it could ever ride up to my ribs. But, I've fallen in love Amphipod products this year. I have the small handheld and a waist pack and they are both terrific. I wrote about my the waist pack here. I was checking out the website yesterday and there are all kinds of options for water belts, but this is the one I think I like the best. It's their trail runner's water belt, and although I never trail run, I think it would be a good option for me because it's adjustable, it's got a BIG pouch on it so I can carry all my nutrition without having to stop at my car halfway through a long run, and the two water bottles are the same volume of four of my current bottles. (I haven't determined if that's a good thing or a bad thing because I like to spread out the weight of the bottles front and back and this might be a little more than my back can handle. Although I think you can reposition where the bottles go.) I really like the bungee cords on the back too which allows me to stash things I may need again, like my gloves in the winter or a shirt in the summertime. Plus, Amphipod has this no bounce guarantee so I know this sucker is not gonna move all over the place.

Thursday, December 09, 2010

"You don't look like them." That's what my dad kept saying to me at Dave's FullRev race this past September. And by "them" my dad meant triathletes. Yes it's true, triathletes and runners look nothing alike. Triathletes are what I call triangle people--broader shoulders, smaller waists. Triathletes tend to be taller, and muscular, and a little less concerned about bulk. Runners, on the other hand, are what I call rectangles--everything is proportional. Runners are a little shorter (or in my case, way shorter), super lean, and almost too skinny, like emaciated-skinny.

I most definitely have always been a rectangle:

Nice picture!

But now that I've moved primarily to triathlon (except for that marathon I'm doing in March) I'm trying to transition my body to be more triangular. Now, I know I'll never be tall (dang it!) so bulking up has always scared me. Being that I'm 5'1", every pound that's added on, shows in all the wrong areas. So this time around I'm trying to build lean muscle while not putting on any extraneous weight. I've been tracking my body fat and my weight along with my calories and nutrition. Since my first big race of the season is a marathon, I'm trying to drop a little bit of weight but I'm also trying to bulk up my arms (swimming) and legs (biking). I'm hoping by the time the BIG race of the year rolls around I'm going to look like a solid triangle (and hopefully with abs like Michelle)

Friday, December 03, 2010

Since my wedding and event schedule is starting to fill up for 2011, it's time to put my racing schedule together also. The big races are planned but I'm still ironing out everything in between. So all of this is tentative and will remain that way until about a week before each race. :)

February - Winter Run 15 miler or Last Chance half marathon. The Winter Run is cheaper but it starts at 1:00 in the afternoon which I don't like. The half marathon is a one mile course you do again and again. I'll keep thinking about this one.